MediaTek launches Dimensity 1080 chipset that can bring 200MP cameras to low-cost phones

The Dimensity 1080 is the faster version of the Dimensity 920 launched mid last year. If the Dimensity 920 popularised 5G connectivity on phones in the affordable range, the new MediaTek solution is pushing features expected more at the premium-high end.

Pushing more and more towards the high-end, the Dimensity 1080 uses TSMC’s 6nm manufacturing process, enough to achieve a performance-to-power ratio that’s hard to match for the competition.

Developed for mid-tier phones, the Dimensity 1080 comes with an AI processor and ARM Mali-G68 series GPU, with support for FullHD+ displays at 120Hz. Aiming for an optimal experience when watching video content, MediaTek has developed MiraVision HDR, a technology that provides automatic optimization of contrast, sharpness, brightness, color and gamma levels appropriate for ambient light conditions.

Taking advantage of the more power-efficient manufacturing process, MediaTek has squeezed in an octa-core CPU with two Cortex-A78 cores (up to 2.6GHz) and six Cortex-A55 cores (up to 2.0GHz) optimized for efficient battery usage.

On the photo side, the MediaTek Dimensity 1080 can handle a camera equipped with a single 200MP sensor, or two sensors of at least 50MP each, capturing images at 30 fps. The SoC supports shooting in 4K HDR mode, using HEVC/H.264 compression. HEVC / H.264 / VP9 compressed video content can also be played back. SDR to HDR conversion for watching videos is also on the list of capabilities, provided in real time with the help of the built-in AI processor.

The Dimensity 1080 chipset can be configured with both LPDDR5 RAM along with UFS 3.1 solutions for high performance internal storage. On the connectivity side we have Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth v5.2 and 5G support with VoNR (Voice over 5G New Radio) support.

The Dimensity 1080 has 5G dual stand-by support (up to two SIM cards). The new chipset is expected from Q4-2022, equipping the next generation of low-cost phones with 5G.